Modern Obsession with putting kids on bigger and bigger ponies/horses

My 5 year old daughter rides either Daisy the shetland pony or Dusty who is about 12hh. My daughter is tall for her age but no way would I put her on anything that was too big for her, it's just silly and asking for trouble!
 
enfys said:
You've been meeting the wrong PC mothers

Most of us are perfectly normal humans that want our children to be safe and happy, and if they want to compete, then we (parents most often being like that) encourage and help them without letting them lose sight of the fact that horse ownership is a privilege to be earned, not a god given right.

Sure you get the loud, pushy, ambitious (living their dreams through a child?) Mums, and Dads, but no more so than in any other sport
Click to expand...

I should have put a disclaimer in :p I know 99.5% are lovely,and that the dragon women stick in your head for being so bloody awfull!
The parents at P pony's RS are wonderfull,they like most normal parents encourage without pushing and enjoy their childs achievments without the need for reflected glory.
It does seem that once you step outside of the PC centre the tweed wearing orcs are the only ones about though! :o :D
 
Hypothetically speaking, so not aimed at anyone put this into consideration.
If you are a 5'6'' woman/young lady/teenager or child of say 10st (approx average?) and claim you feel right / or your parents have been told to put you onto a 16.2hh+ warmblood. (picture that picture),
What on earth do you expect a man of 5'10+ weighing 14st who in comparassion is MUCH bigger than said female rider, actually ride? If we made a horse to 'fit' said man, like he may have been told, we would have to make in common place to have 18.2hh+'s about.
It does all seem rather 'curious' that no-one has seemed to put it into perspective. All we have generally spoken about is teenage daughters and the PC. What about the men who ride?
Personally, I look back at Mark Todd on Charisma. I think we should all remind ourselves of that famous combination and realise that bigger is not always better.
Also to add, yes, oftern ponies are little tykes, but if you can ride those little tykes then you can ride.
 
Ruthnmeg said:
Hypothetically speaking, so not aimed at anyone put this into consideration.
If you are a 5'6'' woman/young lady/teenager or child of say 10st (approx average?) and claim you feel right / or your parents have been told to put you onto a 16.2hh+ warmblood. (picture that picture),
What on earth do you expect a man of 5'10+ weighing 14st who in comparassion is MUCH bigger than said female rider, actually ride? If we made a horse to 'fit' said man, like he may have been told, we would have to make in common place to have 18.2hh+'s about.
It does all seem rather 'curious' that no-one has seemed to put it into perspective. All we have generally spoken about is teenage daughters and the PC. What about the men who ride?
Personally, I look back at Mark Todd on Charisma. I think we should all remind ourselves of that famous combination and realise that bigger is not always better.
Also to add, yes, oftern ponies are little tykes, but if you can ride those little tykes then you can ride.
Click to expand...

Well said m'dear!
 
TGM said:
Oh dear, my bad! I bought my daughter a 16hh warmblood a couple of months ago when she was still 13, so am obviously the sort of parent you are all are slating.

But her gorgeous 14hh pony won't carry her comfortably (particularly jumping) for much longer, and she gets too attached to her animals to be constantly buying new ones as she outgrows them (because she seems to have got tall genes from somewhere - definitely not me).

But she can get on him from the ground, is happy to hack him out alone and she is having a great deal of fun on him:

pop3.jpg


f.jpg


b-2.jpg


Really, it is little to do with size, but more to do with matching the temperament, abilities and experience of horse/pony and rider. Some of the disaster stories listed above are more to do with people matching novice riders to young, inexperienced animals, rather than the size or breed of the animal itself.
Click to expand...

Agreed with you on this!! So long as the person in question is experienced enough to handle the horse and likes them at that height go for it I say!!
 
my 12 year old daughter, after being ditched too many times by her 'right sized' pony will now only ride my 16.3hh DWB

eldest daughter (15) goes from her 13.3hh cob to my horse quite happily

the thing is they can both handle her, both on the ground and under saddle :)
 
i guess it depends on the rider if the rider can handle some big horse then fair enough but little kids at riding schools cant even ride the 13hh so why put a small child on a big 16hh?

im 5.9ft going to make 5.10-11ft and im still riding a 15.1hh tb x
and then theres a little 5.1ft kid riding a 16.3hh with no control or nothing

also sometimes its quite annoying when some little kid buys a big 16hh showjumper and jumps about 2.3ft at local shows it waste of a nice horse!
 
Thing is, it's not just pony club.

Look at the riding club championships. The finals of the NOVICE showjumping go to 1m. My sister is 19 years old, and a tiny 5ft. She adores her stocky chunky built can easily carry her 13hh fell. The fell tries her heart out jumping, and can actually clear a 1m upright. But the spreads are just too much for her at that height.

I was under the impression RC was there for those who don't want to/can't manage to affiliate. But even here you need to have a horse or a big pony to suceed in teams etc.

In showjumping, there's no adults on pony classes. The adult will be disadvantaged.

In dressage, prestigious classes for youngesters always specifiy horse.

In showing, m&m and traditionals excepted, you have to move onto horses when you turn 17.

There's no BE for little ponies.

The entire horse world is prejudiced against staying on ponies. To suceed, you need to have a horse. With this attitude, it's no wonder the pony club put so much pressure on children to get taller horses.
 
I'm really rather surprised at so many comments about PC encouraging parents to over horse their kids.
My daughter is 8 years old, and she's a fair size for her age, 4'5" and weighs 6 stone, I was advised by her PC instructor to get her a pony of about 13hh.

A few months ago we bought her Lady, a 13.1hh 12 year old ISP.
I'm expecting her to get 2-3 years out of her and will then go onto a pony of 14.2hh.....as advised by instructors at PC !

This is her, I think I was given good advice by the PC, because she's spot on size wise with this pony and there is room for growth. Maybe our PC is different lol x
DSCF0166.jpg
 
Ruthnmeg said:
looking like a pea on a T-Rex
Click to expand...

:D :D :D at the image!

QR: I started riding in Canada, at a riding school that had a fair number of ponies, though not as many tiny ones as here. I think most of the ponies and horses (and I'm guessing based on memory and old photos) were between about 13 and 15.2. I rode all sizes up to my instructor's 17+ 4yo trakehner by the time I was 13; actually never gave the height of a horse a second thought! We also never used a mounting block, and I could easily get up on the tall ones from the ground.

(Actually, I find it pretty funny how many people are surprised over here that I can get on tall horses from the ground! Very useful at times!)

I agree people are often too ready to "move up" their kids, but I think it has less to do with the size of the pony, and more with the temperament/state of training/brakes.

Personally, I don't mind what size I ride, but I'm probably a bit happier on taller horses: more neck infront of me, and they spook more slowly! :D
 
Last edited:
mm, actually i cant say this is something i have really noticed- My 10 yr old rides a full up 14.2hh but she is able to tack up get on and off by herself and take her up the local gallops/across stubble fields remaining in control in a snaffle.

She only took the ride over as her 13.2 is ill and i have to say she looks better really size wise on her own pony.

I think people i know tend to leave it too late I know more people riding ponies they have really out grown than horses who are too big for them
 
Ruthnmeg said:
Hypothetically speaking, so not aimed at anyone put this into consideration.
If you are a 5'6'' woman/young lady/teenager or child of say 10st (approx average?) and claim you feel right / or your parents have been told to put you onto a 16.2hh+ warmblood. (picture that picture),
What on earth do you expect a man of 5'10+ weighing 14st who in comparassion is MUCH bigger than said female rider, actually ride? If we made a horse to 'fit' said man, like he may have been told, we would have to make in common place to have 18.2hh+'s about.
It does all seem rather 'curious' that no-one has seemed to put it into perspective. All we have generally spoken about is teenage daughters and the PC. What about the men who ride?
Personally, I look back at Mark Todd on Charisma. I think we should all remind ourselves of that famous combination and realise that bigger is not always better.
Also to add, yes, oftern ponies are little tykes, but if you can ride those little tykes then you can ride.
Click to expand...

But the thing is, the woman or teenager who ends up on a 16.2hh probably didn't buy it because they thought it was the smallest they could ride. You go out looking at a range of heights which you might think fit the rider - so could be looking at a range from 15.2 to 16.2hh for example. If the horse that fits your criteria best happens to be at the top end of the height scale, then you will buy it!

When we were looking for my daughter's horse we were looking at a range from 15hh to 16hh and if a 15 hander had fitted the criteria we would have bought that, but it didn't work out that way for us.
 
I have found that there is definately a trend in PC to have a pony too big for your child. I really don't understand why. We have just been to mini camp and my son is 9 and has 12.2 ponies but we found most of the children(especially the hard core PC families) had bigger ponies even though the children were smaller than my son. I think a child progresses much better in steps and I think it is important to keep buying ponies and not to take one huge step in the hope the pony will last or something. I have saw so many children at PC who have completely lost their confidence through ponies too big, too young or totally unsuitable and instead of getting rid of said pony they persevere with trying to get terrified child to ride it!
 
Am i right in thinkin this thread is aimed the neuveaux "horsey families " that seem more and more common and have children who have ridden for maybe 6 months then gone out and bought an expensive and terribly impressive showjumper/competition horse that the kid cant ride one side of. I have not had much to do with pc but a 14 yr old girl who had a middleweight type 13.2/3 ish pony (perfect pc type pony hunt/jump hackalone or in co') was constantly told all through camp that she needed to get a bigger better faster horse and was not given one ounce of encouragement through the whole week even though every schooling /jumping session she took part in she was one of the only children to give a consistant workmanlike display in while kaos ensued all around as the majority of the rest were over mounted be it in size/type and temperament
 
nativeponies said:
Reply to OP

Does it really matter?
Click to expand...


a) Yes it matters to me as I am sick of being told my daughter's pony is too small for her when it isn't.

b) How much does anything on here matter? Just what matters to you, maybe?

ETA and looking at the two posts between your question and my reply, yes it would appear others are a bit concerned by it too.

What exactly is the point of adding to a thread by saying 'Does it really matter?' anyway?
 
Last edited:
People should get what suits them but I hanker after the old pony days when the summers were long and you could do practically anything with your pony. Ok so I have my rose-tinted specatacles on - actually my pony was an utter beast. But I still think its a shame to miss out on this if you don't have to.

I've seen the kids on my old yard go into shock and mourning when they prematurely move from ponies to horses especially if they go straight from say a 14hh to 16.2hh. With the ponies they were practically with them all day could play gymkhana games on them, do a chase-me-charlie, plait them up with bows that match their brightly coloured bandages and take them for a gallop on the beach and generally whiz about on them and have fun. Get horse - horse doesn't like or deign to put up with this sort of activity. (in fact probably wouldn't stay sound with this kind of activity).

So they suddenly have to start schooling seriously and they can't take it out for a 4 hour picnic park ride because its too delicate (or perceived to be) or gets to excited going in a group. I know ponies a can be naughty but a big naughty horse seems a lot worse.
 
I was 23 when i started riding properly, and the smallest ive ridden is 14.3hh who took up alot of my leg and was a cob (im 6ft 1!).

Ive ridden 18.2s, 17hh's and mainly 16.1/16.2hh's, luckily when i bought the ned i got away with a 16.1 as he is so big boned. I much prefer a smaller horse i must admit, but im quite restricted as im big boned!
 
Iv got the other problem, my son is way to big for his pony and will not come away from his pony and won't sell him. Pony 11.hh and my son is a very tall 9 yr old. Looks silly on him now but he loves him
 
It can sometimes be a case of family ponies getting passed down before they are 'grown into'. I have 4 horses / ponies & dont want to sell them (they are family members) or acquire any more so my younger kids have just ridden their elder siblings outgrown ponies. My tiny 11yo & my 8yo both ride a strong / whizzy 13:2 because thats what we have. The 11yo's legs didn't come past the saddle flaps at first & she is only just starting to look the right size on her.
 
I don't like the trend of tots on lead-rein ponies which they are clearly not capable of having any control over at all. They are completely reliant on the leader as their little legs don't pass the saddle flap. Judges are not helping the situation by happily putting such partnerships at the top of the line
 
I know i fit my 148cm pony perfectly but i feel pressured to 'move onto horses' i dont want to sell her!! i have just started competing a1 1.00-1.10m and am so happy to do it with her, okay so yes i would love to jump higher but i would be so over horsed!! i just want to have fun tbh - the obsession with selling your pony/horse make me :mad::mad::mad: especially yesterday when i saw Mr Smartie yesterday, after 11months of being jumped into the ground he is for sale again, poor boy :(
 
The other day someone came to try a 11.2hh pony to borrow for camp as her chunky 15.2 is too dangerous and bucks her off. The girl was tiny (about8/9 years old?) the perfect size for our 11.2!!! She could barely get him to do anything as her legs were like sticks and she was just flapping around on him. Mum and Dad were your stereotypical pushy pony club parents and thought she was too big for him. I reckon the reason the 15.2 is naughty is because he can get away with it.
 
Haven't read all post so sorry if repeating.
My daughters ponies were alway bought a bit bigger than she needed so she grew into them as didn't want to keep selling them every other year.But did try as far as was possible to make sure nature of pony would meet her needs at the time.
Wouldn't have bought her a big flashy warmblood type just to look good tho she would have to show she could actually ride it
I don't mind what size horse/pony is IF the child is capable of riding it approriately and realise that a horse usually has a totally different mentality to a pony imo and have seen kids struggle with this side rather than the size.
When growing up there used to be a saying up here 'pony will get you out of trouble,horse will get you into it'
There's some kids would cope with a 4 yr old 16.2 horse more than some adults I know.
 
I agree. Somebody I know has just told me to keep and ear open for a 14.2 SJer for her 8/9 yo daughter who can barely ride the most honest 12.2 in the world! I dread to think. . .

That said mine are both 16hh and I'm 5ft on a tall day. I wasn't pushed to move up, I decided to and although my stupid stumpy legs don't have the reaching power that some people's do, I ride them both no problem, and one isn't the easiest at times. :p
 
This is an interesting thread to me because here in America we don't have the variety of wonderful ponies you do in the UK (one of the things I've always been jealous of - I'd love a pony :) ).

My first horse, when I was 10, was a small Morgan -he was 14.1 hh which made him pretty small compared to what most of my friends rode at the time. The norm was around 15 hh. The only people I knew who had ponies had small, mean, miserable Shetlands who'd sooner buck you off and run away than anything else. They were cute, and we learned a lot trying to stay on them but no one really wanted to try doing anything constructive with them!

Most of us rode horses in the !5 - 16 hh range. Now that WB's are all the rage, kids are riding larger horses but most of the WB's I see are pretty steady. I guess a lot of it depends on where you're from and what's available. I can see where the OP is coming from - given the number of wonderful ponies of varying sizes you have, it's great that kids have the opportunity to ride them.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top